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Thursday, October 14, 2004

What's Wrong With Me?

So last night I was supposed to go to this reading at Teaism in downtown D.C. showcasing work from a few local poetry mags: 32 Poems, Barrelhouse, Potion, The Dissociated Writers' Project, and The Potomac. I meant to go. Really, I did. I got into my car in plenty of time and made for the highway. But for some inexplicable reason I got into the south-bound lane instead of heading north, and I soon found myself criss-crossing the back roads of Stafford County, Va.

So I apologize to Mr. Gargoyle who invited me. And I apologize to the two people I know from grad school who now run one of the above mags. I meant to go. And I know it's important to maintain contact and mingle with the local writing community, especially since I don't know any other writers in my day-to-day life. Maybe I needed to wander, or maybe I just wasn't up for the sushi, tea and beer Teaism has to offer. I don't know.

On the good side I closed my journey at Alda's in Fredericksburg, one of the older and more authentic BBQ places in Northern Virginia. And so, with a pulled pork sandwich and a glass of coke on my table, I wrote a page for this story that been plaguing me and figured out some of the next steps I need to make with it. Some of which include researching Celtic and Norse myths, but that's all part of the process, right?

3 comments:

Wow. That sounds like it would have been a cool event. I don't have any day-to-day dealings with fiction as in checking out readings or the like. And somehow I have always meant to check out Teaism and never managed to go. That's pretty cool that you have those connections, too.

However, IMHO, it sounds like it was for the greater good that you sat down with the pulled pork sandwich and figured out that page. Sometimes I skip out on social stuff to write, feel "lame" or "antisocial" and then realize, well hell, I wanted to WRITE dammit. I think that's cool and if the jaunt through the backroads was what it took, all the power to you.

Thanks for the links too. Though I've heard of Barrelhouse (and blogged about it too) I am going to check out those others.

The Potomac aka the Potomac Review is a pretty long running arts mag for the D.C. area. Mostly reviews of arts shows, but would print maybe one piece of fiction and a little poetry each issue. Not sure, but they may be totally on-line now.

Potion is pretty new. I had heard of it, but didn't even know it was in the D.C. area until this reading came up. Looks really promising, though. I wish knowing a few people helped; I haven't published any fiction in almost a year now. Waiting, waiting, waiting on a few pieces and getting ready to send more.

About Me

"It's strange," Hebdomeros was thinking, "as for me, the very idea that something had escaped my understanding would keep me awake at nights, whereas people in general are not in the least perturbed when they see or read or hear things they find completely obscure".